Tartaglia did not answer Paimon, his gaze passing over the two of them to look toward the battlefield.
The slender figure on the sea, bathed in golden-blue light, remained clear even from a great distance.
A stubborn light flickered in his eyes, as if he had grasped the last shred of hope, or as if he were hiding feelings he dared not easily speak.
"I'm going to find Yunqin." He paused, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly, his voice dropping a few tones, yet sounding unusually firm, "There is something I've been holding back for a long time, something I've wanted to say for a long time... I must tell her myself."
Paimon blinked her still-moist eyes, secretly making a "got it" gesture to Lumine.
Lumine gently nodded, her eyes full of gentle indulgence.
As girls, how could they not understand Tartaglia's feelings hidden under the guise of "friendship."
Paimon wiped her tears, shaking her small body: "Alright, alright! We'll take you to find Yunqin!"
Tartaglia smiled at Paimon's antics, but his brow furrowed in pain as the movement pulled at his wound.
Lumine supported his arm, slowing her pace as they walked slowly toward the battlefield.
The sunlight fell on the three of them, stretching their shadows long, blending them into the reviving Liyue.
-
Lu Nanqing shrank back into her chair, clutching the throw pillow tightly to her chest, her mouth uncontrollably grinning from ear to ear.
"Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit! Tartaglia, you're finally about to spill it, aren't you!" She stomped her feet frantically, the sunflower seed plate on her lap tilting from the vibrations, and she didn't even bother to steady the headphones that had slipped and were dangling around her neck.
The hand controlling the mouse trembled slightly, and the scene of Lumine supporting Tartaglia on the screen felt more nerve-wracking to her than her own love life.
"Quick! Just a few more steps! You're almost at the seaside!" she muttered to the screen, her fingertips unconsciously digging into the edge of the throw pillow, "Don't you dare mess this up, Mihoyo, please just give me a real piece of romantic candy!"
The live stream's bullet chat had already exploded, with the golden "Boss is Generous" effect and gifts stacked three layers deep:
"Go for it, Childe! Speak your hidden feelings!"
"I'm losing my mind over this ship! Scion of the Gods x Harbinger, I could write a hundred-thousand-word fanfic with this setting!"
"Wait? Is this romance arc just dropped in out of nowhere? Besides the sparring, bickering, and teasing at the adeptal abode, was there even a penny's worth of buildup? Mihoyo, don't force this ship!"
"I don't care! Visuals are justice! I'm locking this ship in!"
Lu Nanqing spotted the skeptical comments in the chat, immediately grabbed the sunflower seeds from the table, and retorted as she cracked them open, her voice rising a few pitches: "What do you know about slow-burn tension! Have you forgotten Tartaglia's character? Is he the type to say, 'If all else fails, I'll just be with you'? If that's not love, what is!"
She controlled Lumine to navigate around the reviving shrubs by the roadside, her tone even more urgent than the characters' themselves: "Just hang in there! You're about to see Yunqin!"
In the game screen, each step Lumine took while supporting Tartaglia caused a faint golden glow to ripple at the edge of the screen, followed by a fragmented memory.
In the kitchen of Wanmin Restaurant, Yunqin crouched before the stove, flipping the sizzling grilled fish with Xiangling, flour smudged on the tip of her nose, yet her eyes curved into a crescent smile;
At the stone table of Mt. Aocang, Zhongli held her hand to teach her how to write, sunlight filtering through the leaves and spilling over them, warm as melted honey;
On the night of the Lantern Rite, she stood on tiptoe with Hu Tao, Xiangling, and the others to release Xiao Lanterns, watching the lights slowly ascend into the night sky, her eyes filled with a deep affection for Liyue, even the wind carrying her laughter;
On the grassy fields of Guili Plains, she sparred with Tartaglia, getting drenched in water splashes from his blades, yet she stubbornly raised a Geo element attack in response. As water droplets trickled from their hair, they both laughed without a care in the world.
These warm fragments were interspersed with the reviving scenery of Liyue.
Green grass sprouting from the stone-paved road, wind chimes hanging once again under the eaves, and the laughter of children chasing butterflies.
Lu Nanqing's eyes instantly reddened, and she didn't even notice the sunflower seed shells falling on her lap: "Waaah... Why does my nose ache watching such a happy scene!"
The chat in the live stream also softened instantly, and even the viewers who had previously questioned the romantic subplot fell silent:
"So Yunqin was this happy in Liyue... No wonder she was so heartbroken when she was misunderstood..."
"Zhongli really raised her like his own daughter, teaching her to read and protecting her as she grew up, I'm crying to death!"
"..."
Just as Lumine, Tartaglia, and Paimon arrived at the harbor, and Lumine and Tartaglia were already gathering their Elemental Power to build a "bridge," a piercing chill suddenly swept in from the battlefield!
On the sea's surface, Yunqin was staring blankly at a lingering wisp of Xiao Qin's black mist.
The black mist drifted back and forth before her like a kite with a broken string. Her eyes were filled with a complex melancholy, containing both relief and regret for "another version of herself."
"In the end... it had to end this way." She sighed softly, her voice weary from the battle she had just endured, and even her shoulders slumped slightly.
This was the first time she had shown such a vulnerable side.
Before her words had even fully faded, the wisp of black mist that seemed on the verge of dissipating suddenly churned violently. As if drawn by something, it rapidly solidified into a pitch-black vortex!
A hand covered in dark purple armor suddenly thrust out from the vortex, carrying the deathly stillness unique to the Abyss, and pierced through Yunqin's chest without warning!
No blood splattered. The hand seemed to pass directly through her physical body, plunging straight into Yunqin's chest.
Yunqin's body went rigid instantly, her pupils dilating to their limit. The melancholy on her face was replaced by sudden, excruciating pain.
Before she could even let out a cry of pain, a few golden particles of light spilled from the corner of her mouth. They were the signs of all the power within her body collapsing, like shattered stars.
Immediately after, the Abyss Knight slowly stepped out from the black mist.
The dark energy all around him surged wildly, pouncing on the last wisp of Xiao Qin's remaining power like a hungry beast, devouring it completely.
The hand he had thrust into Yunqin's body suddenly clenched, and her body began to tremble uncontrollably. Then he slowly withdrew his arm, cradling a brilliant golden light in his palm.
The light trembled slightly in his hand, like a candle flame about to be extinguished.
The moment the light left her body, Yunqin's pupils began to lose focus, and her once clear eyes rapidly became hollow, as if her entire soul had been drained away.
An unparalleled sense of pain and helplessness swept through her entire body. She could even clearly feel the power within her rapidly draining.
The gold and blue divine light faded from around her, and the Vision at her waist grew dim and lifeless. She didn't even have the strength to remain standing, her body collapsing softly.
"Yunqin!"
Zhongli and Venti's voices rang out simultaneously, their expressions changing drastically.
The Geo element all around Zhongli surged instantly, the hem of his long robe whipped up by the air current as he prepared to condense a Stone Spear and charge forward.